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University of York’s £630,000 scientific research boost

THE University of York will be one of the beneficiaries of a £60m investment in scientific research by the Government.

Business Secretary Vince Cable has announced that the university will be allocated £630,000 to help scientists and engineers at the facility create businesses from their research, and improve entrepreneurship.

The funding, known as Impact Acceleration Accounts (IAA) comes from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), one of the UK’s main funding agencies for scientific research.

It will support the university’s projects in EPSRC-funded departments, and broaden engagement between scientists and business.

Professor John Local, pro-vice-chancellor for research, said: “We welcome the award of the Impact Accelerator Account which we shall use to increase the successful commercialisation of EPSRC-funded research.

“It will ease the transition from initial idea to commercial reality at a time when access to external sources of funding is increasingly challenging.

“The IAA will also help us to broaden the scope of business engagement with EPSRC-relevant academic departments. We also want to support opportunities for researcher mobility across the academic-business divide.”

The investment will help companies engage with research projects at early stages to allow them to benefit from research breakthroughs, and will be used to support partnerships with companies to take some of the risk out of their investment.

The funding will also support the early stages of turning research into commercial propositions, known as the “Valley of Death”, between research ideas and developing it to the stage where a company or venture capitalist might be interested.

Professor Dave Delpy, EPSRC chief executive, said: “The research we support is recognised as outstanding on the international stage. These awards aim to make a step change in the impact that has on society, generating new business opportunities which drive economic growth, creating better, more informed, public policy.”